Thursday, August 11, 2016

This Decade-Spanning Novel of Family and Faith Will Delight Now
in her eighties, Perla Phillips has carried a secret since she was
eighteen years old. When she sees her granddaughter, Ella, struggling
for perfection, she decides to share her secret to show that God can use
even the biggest mistakes for good. But before she can reveal what
happened during that summer sixty years ago, she has a debilitating
stroke. Carrying a secret of her own, Ella arrives back in Wise,
West Virgina, to help her aunt Sadie care for Perla. Both know the woman
wanted to tell them something, but she's now locked in silence.
Together they begin looking into the past, but they may learn more than
they expected. Will they have the courage to share their hearts? Or will the truth remain buried forever?

About The Author

Sarah Loudin Thomas grew up on a 100-acre farm in French Creek, WV,
the seventh generation to live there. Her Christian fiction is set in
West Virginia and celebrates the people, the land, and the heritage of
Appalachia. Her first novel, Miracle in a Dry Season, released August
2014 through Bethany House. Book #2, Until the Harvest, released May
2015. Sarah is represented by Wendy Lawton of Books & Such Literary
Agency.
A graduate of Coastal Carolina University in Conway, SC, Sarah once
dreamed of being a marine scientist. But her love for words won out and
she has spent much of her career in public relations and marketing. She
currently oversees fundraising and communications for a Christian
children’s home in Black Mountain, NC.
Sarah and her husband Jim live in the mountains of Western North
Carolina with Thistle–the canine equivalent to a personal trainer
pushing them to hike, run, and throw sticks. Sarah is active in her
local church and enjoys cooking and–you guessed it–reading.

My Review

This is the story of Ella, a young gifted woman, who receives
devastating news that her beloved Perla, her Grandmother, has had a
stroke. Also heading home is Aunt Sadie, she is now berating herself for
not letting her mother tell her whom her biological father was.The
story flashes back to when Perla was a young foolish girl and how she
ends up finding happiness. We also learn of Ella’s relationship with
Mark, and that made me worry that maybe he was a stalker? While home
in her beloved home and church Ella goes about taking care of her
Grandmother, and doing her beautiful art quilts, which ties in
beautifully with her hometown. It also puts her in worlds of the past
and present using clothing of the past in her quilts. There is
something her for everyone, and we wonder if Sadie is ever going to be
able to find answers, she sure spends a lot of time looking for them,
and in the end meeting new family.We also have a few love interests for Ella, even Mark, Richard, the Pastor, and Seth her brother’s friend. I received this book through Bethany House Publishing and was not required to give a positive review.